Operton cpus for cheap rendering/ gaming system

[log dawg]

Hi guys quick question. Could i use amd operton 6174 for gaming? Also how many would be sufficient for a rendering machine? Im looking into 4 opertons and a 980 ti or more gpus. Is there any other cheap gaming builds that I could use for rendering/gaming? Are the cheap intel xeons a good choice?  

[Minbari]

An opteron 6174 has fairly poor single threaded performance so it isn't ideal for gaming. If you are looking into used server equipment for gaming, consider a low core count/high clock speed Xeon. An E5-2643 V2 is a good value option for the LGA 2011 socket. If you are wanting to go older than that generation, you could consider high end offerings from the X5600 series, but don't expect those motherboards to have options for high end storage or USB or anything. 

 

Also realize that on workstation/server motherboards the support for Geforce drivers is pretty poor. So consider a newer Xeon so you can use an X79 board with that CPU, and this will greatly simplify finding graphics drivers that work for you. 

[NoxiousOdor]

2 minutes ago, log dawg said:

Hi guys quick question. Could i use amd operton 6174 for gaming? Also how many would be sufficient for a rendering machine? Im looking into 4 opertons and a 980 ti or more gpus. Is there any other cheap gaming builds that I could use for rendering/gaming? Are the cheap intel xeons a good choice?  

What is your budget? If you are on a low budget then yes a xeon might be a good option. You can get a hyperthreaded quad core like this one:

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Intel-Xeon-W3550-3-06GHz-8MB-4-8GT-s-SLBEY-LGA-1366-CPU-Processor-/282417112242?epid=1924669122&hash=item41c15f24b2:g:VsoAAOSww3tY3uE2

 

And if you need a motherboard to match you could get this or similar:

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/SUPERMICRO-MOTHERBOARD-AMIBIOS-686Q-2000-AMERICAN-MEGATRENDS-C7X58-08A26-6-/263236844956?epid=74132507&hash=item3d4a237d9c:g:FtQAAOSwNW5ZeNm4

[NoxiousOdor]

Just now, Minbari said:

but don't expect those motherboards to have options for high end storage or USB or anything.

x58 boards almost all support storage speeds up to 3GB/s which is more than enough and it is only about $20 for a usb 3.0 adapter 

[Minbari]

Just now, WhisperingKnickers said:

x58 boards almost all support storage speeds up to 3GB/s which is more than enough and it is only about $20 for a usb 3.0 adapter 

Depending on what he would be interested in sure. It would still cut the performance of a sata3 ssd in half. Not all boards/CPU's have the pci-e slots or lanes to support the kind of expansion you might want. With potentially multiple GPU's on the table, adding a usb 3.0 card and maybe even a raid card or m.2-pcie adapter might limit options. All depends on the total budget available...

[log dawg]

5 minutes ago, WhisperingKnickers said:

What is your budget? If you are on a low budget then yes a xeon might be a good option. You can get a hyperthreaded quad core like this one:

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Intel-Xeon-W3550-3-06GHz-8MB-4-8GT-s-SLBEY-LGA-1366-CPU-Processor-/282417112242?epid=1924669122&hash=item41c15f24b2:g:VsoAAOSww3tY3uE2

 

And if you need a motherboard to match you could get this or similar:

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/SUPERMICRO-MOTHERBOARD-AMIBIOS-686Q-2000-AMERICAN-MEGATRENDS-C7X58-08A26-6-/263236844956?epid=74132507&hash=item3d4a237d9c:g:FtQAAOSwNW5ZeNm4

Is using more of these cpus worth it??

[NoxiousOdor]

Just now, log dawg said:

Is using more of these cpus worth it??

What do you mean?

 

Also can you tell us a little more about the computer you want to build and how big of a budget do you have?

[Ground]

5 minutes ago, WhisperingKnickers said:

What is your budget? If you are on a low budget then yes a xeon might be a good option. You can get a hyperthreaded quad core like this one:

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Intel-Xeon-W3550-3-06GHz-8MB-4-8GT-s-SLBEY-LGA-1366-CPU-Processor-/282417112242?epid=1924669122&hash=item41c15f24b2:g:VsoAAOSww3tY3uE2

 

And if you need a motherboard to match you could get this or similar:

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/SUPERMICRO-MOTHERBOARD-AMIBIOS-686Q-2000-AMERICAN-MEGATRENDS-C7X58-08A26-6-/263236844956?epid=74132507&hash=item3d4a237d9c:g:FtQAAOSwNW5ZeNm4

If you get a used Xeon, get at least a *6** one, 32nm, and they overclock better. Non-overclocked the Single Core performance isn't great either, but with most x58 boards (branded ones - Asus, MSI, Gigabyte especially) a decent (4GHz+ overclock should be reachable. To read more about those head over here.

Just now, Minbari said:

Depending on what he would be interested in sure. It would still cut the performance of a sata3 ssd in half. Not all boards/CPU's have the pci-e slots or lanes to support the kind of expansion you might want. With potentially multiple GPU's on the table, adding a usb 3.0 card and maybe even a raid card or m.2-pcie adapter might limit options. All depends on the total budget available...

Well, if he wants it to be worthwhile it should at least be an x58 board, and all of those have plenty of expansion slots. 

[log dawg]

1 minute ago, WhisperingKnickers said:

What do you mean?

 

Also can you tell us a little more about the computer you want to build and how big of a budget do you have?

Like i was originally thinking of using a multi socket motherboard for rendering, and video editing, and coding and emulating. I have a budget of around 500 dollars

[Minbari]

Just now, log dawg said:

I have a budget of around 500 dollars

For the entire system or for the rest of the computer minus graphics card and case? 

[log dawg]

Just now, Minbari said:

For the entire system or for the rest of the computer minus graphics card and case? 

entire system considering its my first build

[NoxiousOdor]

Just now, log dawg said:

Like i was originally thinking of using a multi socket motherboard for rendering, and video editing, and coding and emulating. I have a budget of around 500 dollars

Oh perfect! Dual socket boards are great, I am currently using one and I love it.

 

I would recommend a supermicro board like this 

 

then get two identical lga 1366 xeons.

 

One thing to look out for though is you will need a power supply with dual cpu power. An example of one is in my signature 

[NoxiousOdor]

1 minute ago, log dawg said:

entire system considering its my first build

If you need the entire system I would go with a single socket board as they are easier to work with and will save you some money because you wont need to get special coolers or a power supply

[NoxiousOdor]

Or for $500 you could easily buy a used Dell Optiplex and use the rest of your budget to add a graphics card

[LtStaffel]

Do remember that GPUs murder CPUs in all rendering/repetitive-workload operations where they are supported. Don't build a CPU render machine unless absolutely necessary. The money would be much better put into more GPU power.

[log dawg]

3 minutes ago, WhisperingKnickers said:

If you need the entire system I would go with a single socket board as they are easier to work with and will save you some money because you wont need to get special coolers or a power supply

I was thinking of doing the multi socket cpu setup then possibly upgrading it either by getting a 3 or more cpu socket motherboard and making water cooling it?? would that be possible?

[log dawg]

Just now, LtStaffel said:

Do remember that GPUs murder CPUs in all rendering/repetitive-workload operations where they are supported. Don't build a CPU render machine unless absolutely necessary. The money would be much better put into more GPU power.

I was considering that option as well, but is there any single socket cpu motherboard that has like 5 gpu slots? 

[NoxiousOdor]

Just now, log dawg said:

I was thinking of doing the multi socket cpu setup then possibly upgrading it either by getting a 3 or more cpu socket motherboard and making water cooling it?? would that be possible?

It is possible but not worth it, most server motherboards that are x58 do not have standard mounting points for coolers and the cpus dont get very hot anyway so watercooling wouldnt be worth the cost

[NoxiousOdor]

1 minute ago, log dawg said:

I was considering that option as well, but is there any single socket cpu motherboard that has like 5 gpu slots? 

Yes but they can be expensive and would not be a good fit for your budget, they are often $200+

[Minbari]

Watercooling at the budget you have is not reasonable without major sacrifices to every other component in the build. If you require 5 GPU slots then spending more to get a decent platform and a CPU would be required. This obviously eats away a pretty significant portion of your budget

[log dawg]

4 minutes ago, Minbari said:

Watercooling at the budget you have is not reasonable without major sacrifices to every other component in the build. If you require 5 GPU slots then spending more to get a decent platform and a CPU would be required. This obviously eats away a pretty significant portion of your budget

I dont really require that many gpu slots but i was trying to make a computer that could be like "future proofed" in case i wanted to do anything more with it

[Minbari]

Just now, log dawg said:

I dont really require that many gpu slots but i was trying to make a computer that could be like "future proofed" in case i wanted to do anything more with it

Personally, for $500 and for trying to use a 980 Ti (A card that will cost around half the budget), I would worry less about future-proofing and more about making a good system today. If in a couple years you need a new motherboard and a newer generation CPU, it probably won't hurt a ton if you only spent $70 total on them both. Also realize that only some software can ever utilize that many graphics cards- next to no games will benefit, only GPU accelerated workloads such as davinci resolve or lightroom would see benefit. 

[LtStaffel]

12 minutes ago, log dawg said:

I was considering that option as well, but is there any single socket cpu motherboard that has like 5 gpu slots? 

You only need a minimum of PCI 1x because you can get 1 to 16 risers, thus allowing as many GPUs as you have slots. You may need to go custom case with this route. This is what miners do. Since you don't care about PCI bandwidth with rendering, it's okay to murder it down to 1x instead of 16x. This also eliminates any worries about CPU PCI lanes.

[LtStaffel]

Just now, LtStaffel said:

You only need a minimum of PCI 1x because you can get 1 to 16 risers, thus allowing as many GPUs as you have slots. You may need to go custom case with this route. This is what miners do. Since you don't care about PCI bandwidth with rendering, it's okay to murder it down to 1x instead of 16x. This also eliminates any worries about CPU PCI lanes.

Btw, this would be a HORRIBLE build for gaming, in case that wasn't clear.

[log dawg]

23 minutes ago, LtStaffel said:

Btw, this would be a HORRIBLE build for gaming, in case that wasn't clear.

Not trying to make it anything spectacular just so that if i can play and code then im good. What would be a good setup then?